Scripps cardiac building reaches construction midpoint

Drive east on Genesee Avenue from Interstate 5 and it’s hard to miss the seven-story facade of the new Prebys Cardiovascular Institute.

Though the building looks nearly complete from the street, there is still about 18 months of work to do on the inside before the $456 million facility is ready to be the beating heart of Scripps Health.

“Once you put the skin on, it looks finished, but 50 percent of the work to be done is on the inside of the building. The infrastructure’s there, but now it’s connecting it all,” said Gary Fybel, chief executive of Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla, where the new building is located.

Workers spray a coat of primer paint inside one of 167 private rooms at the new Prebys Cardiovascular Institute at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla on Aug. 28. The nearly 400,000-square-foot seven-story building is scheduled for completion in 2015.— Peggy Peattie

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Workers spray a coat of primer paint inside one of 167 private rooms at the new Prebys Cardiovascular Institute at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla on Aug. 28. The nearly 400,000-square-foot seven-story building is scheduled for completion in 2015.
— Peggy Peattie

Officials on Wednesday celebrated the project’s midpoint, unveiling a massive sign that honors the building’s name donor, local developer Conrad Prebys, who contributed $45 million.

Scripps also announced that Jerry Sanders, chief executive of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce and the city’s former mayor, will lead the effort to raise the remaining $60 million of a $180 million public fundraising campaign.

When complete, the new building will have 167 beds in single-patient rooms and six state-of-the-art operating rooms designed just for cardiovascular procedures. The plan is for Scripps’ five hospital campuses, and Kaiser Permanente, to perform the majority of their cardiac procedures in the institute building when it opens in 2015.

The building is the cornerstone of a $1.5 billion 25-year master plan to reshape the Scripps La Jolla hospital.

As the structure has taken shape since ground breaking in 2011, some of its most important safety features have come into focus.

Walking the building’s halls on a recent morning, Michael Sykes, administrative director of clinical services for Scripps La Jolla, pointed out white metal posts bolted to the ceilings in each patient room. Soon, those posts will anchor special electric lifts that will allow a nurser or orderly to help a patient out of bed in a supine or sitting position. This can be easier on a health care worker’s back and can also be safer for the patient, Sykes said.

Another simple design feature comes down to smart location. The head of each bed is on the same wall as each room’s bathroom, providing the shortest possible trip with the fewest obstacles in the way. Even the curbs on showers have been eliminated to reduce the chance of tripping.

Location also dictated the placement of nurse hand-washing stations. They’re by each room’s door so that workers will have a better chance of remembering to scrub up before touching a patient.

“We’re looking for an environment where both the staff and the patients are safe,” Sykes said.